Index Home A desire, that we could replace a failed organ, is age-old. Hindu God Ganesha, had his head replaced by one of an elephant. So are numerous chimeric Greek gods, that have fused body parts from more than one animal. Cosmas and Damian patron saints in medieval Rome, transplanted a diseased leg with a healthy… Continue reading Donate a healthy organ to mend another’s failed one
Category: Health concepts
Healthy, well, happy, quality
A familiar orthoses from the past: Leather and metal polio-brace
Index Home Orthoses are external supports attached to a limb or a body part. Today such devices are made of lighter materials, and are used to support knee, ankle, elbow or hand. We use more elaborate ones to straighten or support our spines. Till a few decades ago, heavier Leather and steel lower limb orthoses were… Continue reading A familiar orthoses from the past: Leather and metal polio-brace
Basic Life Support (BLS) makes dead alive again
Index Home Basic Life Support or BLS is a sequence of actions, that attempt to bring life back, after it has seemingly ceased. When heart stops, or lungs fail to breathe, we have moved closer to death. However, all is still not over. We still have a few more minutes to make heart to beat… Continue reading Basic Life Support (BLS) makes dead alive again
Babywearing: A new name for an old tradition
Index Home Words have a history, and so has “babywearing”. As per Webster’s dictionary, we used this word for the first time in the year 1989. It is the practice of carrying babies, or small children in a sling, or another form of carrier. Practically any parent, usually mothers can wear their babies, keeping both hands… Continue reading Babywearing: A new name for an old tradition
Cardiac surgery: putting heart under a knife
Index Home In 1896 a textbook of surgery had noted that operating on a heart is impossible. Muscles of the heart are always in motion, and its chambers are always churning blood. Heart is enclosed in a thick cover. We know this cover as pericardium. While, in 1893 an American surgeon Daniel Hale Williams had stitched… Continue reading Cardiac surgery: putting heart under a knife
Wavy ECG gestures that make our heart to beat
Index Home We all live, without skipping a heart-beat. These are more than 25 billion beats over a life-time. Each of these beats means that our heart muscles have had a powerful squeeze, pours blood to all our nooks and corners. But what makes our heart beat ? This enigma was settled in early 1900s, when… Continue reading Wavy ECG gestures that make our heart to beat
The history of hysteria, our frenzy of womb or mind
Index Home Hysteria is a state of emotional extreme. Today we know it as an uncontrolled frenzy or excitement, that may stem from intense happiness, spirituality or even grief. Attendees of a pop-concert often become hysterical, and this emotion often consumes spiritual congregations. The range of emotions is wide, from a hysterical laugh to a cry.… Continue reading The history of hysteria, our frenzy of womb or mind
Yoga: An Indian cultural export to the world
Index Home Yoga is a centuries-old practice that combines physical, mental, and spiritual elements to promote overall well-being and harmony. The word means – “to join”. It joins mind and the body. Rooted in ancient Indian philosophy, yoga has gained immense popularity worldwide as a holistic approach to health and self-discovery. Yoga describes a series of… Continue reading Yoga: An Indian cultural export to the world
Caring for age and to cherish our lives
Index Home We do not want to age, yet all of us will. We also want to live long, and defy both age and death. However, this wish gets fulfilled in mythology, and for a selected few. Hindu mythology identifies seven ‘immortals’ or ‘chiranjeevis‘. Six of these were blessed (Hanuman, Parashuram, Vibhishan, Mahabali, Kripacharya, and Ved… Continue reading Caring for age and to cherish our lives
Semmelweis and his struggle for a simple handwash
Index Home Washing hands is a simple, low cost, and an obvious health-promoting measure. Yet, we need not one, but two days in a year to reinforce its need. 5th May every year is a World hand hygiene day, and 15th October, a global hand-washing day. In mid-19th century, a doctor named Semmelweis struggled to introduce… Continue reading Semmelweis and his struggle for a simple handwash